Originally Posted by edwardgreene
A Possibility: Reopening / Relocation
Sharing my views on the current situation and the possibilities of what GL could become. And the key objective for this is "Gentrification and Opportunities".
Current situation:
- Most, if not all girls have returned to their respective countries.
- Operating costs are now a concern, bearing in-mind there will also be a cost of ramp up when operating these services can resume.
Other observations:
- From the good ol' days before CB, we have already seen alot of new developments in GL. Some of the houses in the outliers of the central lanes like Lor 6, 8..20 and so on, have started to close, e.g. Lor 24.
- Urban development has moved in to develop smaller private housing, apartments and condos. These are smaller units targeting potential owners/ tenants that are singles, couples.
- Retail businesses: more interesting stores are opening up. eg. cafe, dining and so on.Without going to more details, GL is prime for gentrification. Look at Keong Siak as an example.
- Probably some more other related ones.
The redlight crowd brings in a mix of people given the cat 40 to 150 range, the redlight activities is a breeding ground for many things (incl gambling, illegal sale of cigs, sex aid medications etc) and after the learnings from SARS and the current pandemic, a central location is more set for development i.e. gentrification.
I don't think the legal redlight business will go away - once ready, those in-charge will take this opportunity to relocate the business. Again, think of the above points, those in-charge will want to achieve the following once business can resume:
- controlled environment and location (better surveillance, crowd control, tracking etc)
- manage property value
- etc
If those are just some of the possible areas to achieve, we could possibly see the redlight district relocating areas away from prime housing and retail business districts. This could be areas that have light industrial areas like Woodlands, Tuas, Lim Chu Kang, Sembawang, Kaki Bukit, Yishun. So why light industrial areas:
- These could be the lower rise light industrial blocks as they allow containment.
- Containment is key allowing: surveillance, tracking. Parking for those who drive in a central area. Any form of outbreak whether virus, fighting etc is contained and mobile enforcement and medical services can have rapid deployment.
- Illegal street walkers: this may not be fully eliminated but more controlled as you have surveillance, mobile enforcement for rapid response.
- Ancillary services: DSC could have the clinic relocated to the new blocks or have an extended operation there. This also means, these blocks could also become living quarters for the workers / girls with new basic services (job creation).
- With the general population seeing redlight district as 'undesirable services', this could be a win for those in-charge as a relocation will have a lower impact on the wider matter around residential and retail businesses. If this happens, then GL will get to gentrify, just like Keong Siak. This current 'down time' becomes a bonus to plan, shift and then execute.
Now timelines, GL / redlight districts will not be opening up anytime soon given its inherent nature of how bodily fluids gets exchanged and transmitted. A STABLE vaccine will only be available mid to end 2021, also assuming that there are no off-shoot issues where the viral strain mutates.
With the above in mind, I personally think, these services will resume only in late 2021 or early 2022 whether a relocation happens, or not.
Anyway, just my thoughts.
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